At St Victor's Abbey, the oldest church in Marseille, Candlemas is held on February 2. The date is in the crypt of St. Victor Abbey. In antiquity, the sacred place bore the name Notre-Dame de la Confession des Martyrs: in fact, the present crypt corresponds to the first basilica, built around 420-430 to glorify the tortured martyrs and welcome their remains. Saint Victor, a Roman soldier who converted to Christianity, was among those who suffered this sad fate.
Even today, in the crypt of the church 'inhabits' a wooden statue of the Virgin with the Child on her lap: it is Our Lady of Confession: the Virgin is black and her tunic is green and gold, like that of the Child Jesus. And it is precisely the green, as we shall see, that has a specific meaning in the tradition of Candlemas and related feasts celebrated in the basilica of Saint Victor. On that day, the Candlemas octave begins (a process during which the famous black virgin as well as the green candles symbolizing light, hope and purifying fire come out).
The processions end at the "Four des Navettes" (rue Sainte next to the Abbaye St Victor), the former bakery of the abbey, with blessings from the oven by the Archbishop of Marseille (a 232-year-old oven).
